Cheap musketeer trick

[cliff]

Someone called the warrior a "cheap rifleman" with Leo in mind. True, but what about that "warrior production upgraded to pikeman" message you get when you discover feudalism and later the pikeman upgraded to musketeer? Now you cannot build warriors anymore. Or can you?

Yes, I just found out that it is possible to build warriors even after gunpowder or conscription for that matter. The trick is to not research feudalism and to not open the units menu in the city screen. Put some cities on warrior production and then discover gunpowder but not feudalism. Now the production will not be upgraded! You can continue to build warrior after warrior. And when you discover a new tech they will become musketeers with Leo's.

 

[funxus]

I usually try to avoid feudalism as long as possible, but want to build JSB, which requires feudalism unless I trade theology, before I switch to Democracy.
In my game I get a popup that says my production in a city is upgraded to the new unit, which means I can't keep producing warriors.

 

[Smash]

Yes this a bug or exploit.As long as you don't change production you can keep pumping out warriors.This "bug" is used frequently in scenarios.

 

[Marlos]

Neat trick, but wouldn't the city's production effectively shut down eventually because of assigned units?

 

[Duke of Marlbrough]

You can just rehome the units to other cities once they are built.

Some people also do this just to have them convert to Musketeers and then disband them into cities for production. Warrior costs 10 shields, Musketeer is 30 shields. You get half the shields that the unit cost back into the cities production, so a Musketeer would provide 15 shields when disbanded. 50% bonus in production. Plus, since warriors are easily rush built, you can bascially build one per turn for very little gold.

Let's say you have a 300 shield wonder. It would take 300 shields of normal production to get it done (through direct build or using 6 caravans). If you used the warrior trick, it would take 20 disbanded musketeers to finish the Wonder. 20 musketeers comes from 20 warriors. 20 warriors costs 200 shields. If planned properly, you could have 20 cities build warriors, let them upgrade and then disband them into a city for an instant wonder. If you have the 20 cities to use, it would be cheaper and quicker to rush buy 20 warriors than 6 caravans.

I don't use it too much because I can't see commiting a group of cities to warrior production while the city needs marketplaces, aqueducts and banks. Plus, by the time I am at Musketeers I am in a Republic and the wasted shields for maintinance is too much.

 

[AnarchyBoy]

I've always thought it was sort of funny the way you can change from one wonder to another like that. Changing fom the Lighthouse to the Hanging Gardens? What do they do, just set up some potted plants?

 

[covok48]

Haha...or King Richard's Crusade without actually going to war?